


It's Not So Bad

by PunishedPyotr



Category: Metal Gear
Genre: Attempted Blow Job, Consensual Somnophilia, Fluff, Liquid tops!, M/M, Past Rape/Non-con, Sleepy Sex, reupload
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-05
Updated: 2018-03-05
Packaged: 2019-03-27 04:46:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13873443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PunishedPyotr/pseuds/PunishedPyotr
Summary: Oh hell.It was much more devotion in his thoughts than base lust, but nonetheless Mantis couldn’t stand looking at the expression in the eyes right now. It was a little too intimate, a little too raw.





	It's Not So Bad

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Oneironautics](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5955667) by [hectocotyle](https://archiveofourown.org/users/hectocotyle/pseuds/hectocotyle). 



> This was a conglomeration of a couple different "requests", that is, ideas kicked around on the good ol' fujoshi shitposting Discord server that is now deleted. [Its successor is alive and well, though.](https://discord.gg/HrDf3QK)
> 
> Also I know I didn't cite hectocotyle as an inspiration the first time this was uploaded, but I'm, like, 90% sure that the first part of this fic was totally me going *points at that one chapter of _Oneironautics_ * I WANNA DO THAT TOO :D

It had started with a misaimed coping mechanism.

No, that wasn’t true. It had _started_ when they were kids, when Mantis didn’t mind being touched so much and Liquid was smitten with how cute Mantis was, and the two of them were extremely isolated and often didn’t have much better to do than lay about and cuddle, anyway.

What _escalated_ it was Liquid’s need to know, after what happened to him while he was being held prisoner in Iraq, that he wasn’t too filthy and defiled to touch. He wasn’t damaged goods and he wasn’t repulsive, no matter Mantis’ opinion on sex. And he wasn’t alone as he picked up the pieces from that, either.

It was mostly a lot of hand-holding and hair-petting at first. Sometimes a cautious embrace, a nuzzle, sometimes softly running fingers over lips. Then a few years later, somewhere in northern Africa, their whole relationship had kind of stumbled to the next level in the backseat of Liquid’s Jeep as Mantis replicated Liquid’s abuse, but gently, pleasurably, _consensually_ , and his only saving grace was the fact that Liquid was too distracted to ever notice that Mantis hadn’t even _tried_ to get off on it too.

It kind of continued like that for a while, even after they joined FOXHOUND (prompting the retirement of the drill instructor) and the new millennium rolled around and with it, the Liquid Snake era of the understaffed, underfunded (“scrappy,” Liquid referred to it in front of some brass once) special forces unit.

That meant that Liquid got his own quarters, of course, which Mantis took up residence in immediately. (Not that there were a whole lot of other people in the men’s barracks, but sharing a room with one person was still much more private and therefore preferable.) Liquid was thrilled with that — sharing a bed with Mantis meant the end of rushed handjobs in neglected storage closets, where Liquid always felt half out of his mind with anxiety that someone would _hear_ , or worse, open the door and _see_.

But now that they were doing things _properly_ , Liquid had started to feel kind of bothered about the fact no matter how many times Mantis brought him to orgasm, he never ever expected him to return the favor. True, he knew Mantis wasn’t exactly… into that kind of thing, but he still felt unbalanced and selfish and he wished that, just once, Mantis would ask him to reciprocate, if only to see what it was really like.

So that was how they ended up here.

“I just want you to know,” Mantis breathed, one hand tangled almost nervously in Liquid’s hair, “that if I cannot… get it up… then it will not be because of you. I know how eager to please me you are. I appreciate it.”

“Hush,” Liquid said, rubbing the insides of Mantis’ thighs soothingly, “just relax. It’s easier if you just relax.”

“Hn.”

Mantis was sitting on the edge of the bed with Liquid kneeling in front of him, in between his legs, and looking up at him with an almost uncharacteristically soft expression that Mantis couldn’t help but read as expectant. He was glad Liquid couldn’t see his face - he was grimacing right now - but he knew full well that Liquid more than picked up on how… uneasy Mantis was. But he was determined to work through it and coax some pleasure out of Mantis.

How kind.

“You’re free to tell me to slow down or stop anytime you like,” Liquid murmured, unhurriedly bringing his hands up to the top of Mantis’ pants, “or anything you want, really, just - try to keep an open mind about this, Mantis, alright? Try to relax. Just sit back and let me take care of you…”

Honestly Liquid running his mouth like this kind of made him feel even more on edge about this. He hadn’t even started yet and Mantis’ skin was already crawling, his stomach already tight and knotted. Still, he nodded down at him, running his fingers back through his hair for lack of anything better to do with his hands.

Liquid unbuttoned and unzipped Mantis’ pants, and Mantis had to glance away. He couldn’t stand the way Liquid was staring at his crotch in anticipation — especially with his face about six inches away from it.

“Sorry, moving too fast already…?”

“I… it… is fine, Eli.”

He felt a twinge of annoyance come from Liquid at being called his given name, but Liquid pushed it down, figuring if Mantis using that name made him feel more comfortable, well… Mantis snorted. Funnily enough, Liquid getting irritated by the name _did_ make him feel more comfortable. It was definitely a more _familiar_ situation than Liquid trying to suck his cock.

Oh, hell. Why had he agreed to this, again?

Liquid took Mantis’ shaky inhale as a sign to continue. “Nothing to worry about, Mantis,” he said, “I’ll- I’ll be as gentle as I can, I’ll take it slow… I’ll make you feel very good,” he promised, leaning forward and pressing a kiss to Mantis’ stomach, low enough that Mantis twitched at the touch of his lips, then he felt Liquid’s hands run reassuringly over his thighs again.

“…continue,” Mantis said despite himself.

Liquid kissed his stomach once more, his hip, pulling Mantis’ pants open — Mantis shifted his weight, uneasy again, vaguely wanting to move his other hand from where he was holding his shirt up out of the way for Liquid’s sake.

 _Relax_ , Liquid reminded him, his lips warm and unmoving for the moment against Mantis’ skin.

He felt his fingers under the band of his underwear.

He actually moved back on the bed. Abruptly, without warning. Liquid was so laser-focused on getting to Mantis’ dick that he only sort of followed the move, falling ungracefully forward, catching himself with a clack of teeth and his chin against the edge of the mattress.

He winced. Bit his tongue.

“Are you alright?” he said lamely.

Mantis was silent for a moment, trying to find words, then gave up and let Liquid just feel his emotions for about two seconds before going back to hiding them. Liquid’s face fell.

“Oh.”

“…sorry, Eli. But- I think this is _disgusting_ , you _know_ that.”

“You’re more nervous than anything else.”

Mantis couldn’t really deny that. He shrugged, and while it was supposed to be noncommittal it really did come across more as helpless.

Liquid climbed up on the bed and sat in front of Mantis, deliberately not getting too close. “Most of the problems you have with sex stem from the fact that you think it’s selfish, don’t they?” he said.

“Are you denying that it is?”

“Eh… for most people, no. But come _on_ , Mantis - do you think I’m selfish, for wanting to do this for you?”

Mantis readily shook his head. He really couldn’t bring himself to think of Liquid as being selfish here when his head was currently stuffed with thoughts of how to get Mantis to calm down and let himself enjoy himself. Liquid hesitated for a moment, then put a hand on Mantis’ knee.

“Do you think _you’re_ being selfish by agreeing to let me do this?”

That… was a harder question to answer.

“I feel it’s an unfair demand on you, Eli. You really do not have to do this.”

Liquid squeezed his leg, smiling awkwardly. “I _want_ to do this. You’ve done so much for me…”

“I…” Mantis put his hands over the lens of his gas mask, taking a deep breath that rasped way too loudly through the filter considering how quiet the base was tonight. “Fine. Alright, Eli, you- may continue. Or start over, really, I suppose.”

He felt a surge of gratitude and unspeakable relief from Liquid, and relaxed a little. Right. Whatever issues he might have with the concept of sex, it was making Liquid happy - which was, of course, the same logic that had led to their one-sided sexual relationship — surely it wouldn’t be so bad to apply the same idea in reverse. That would make it tolerable, no? And not only tolerable, but Liquid was going to make every effort to ensure that Mantis found it palatable on a physical level as well…

Maybe this wasn’t going to be so bad, Mantis realized as Liquid nestled between his legs again, lying on his stomach on the bed this time instead of kneeling on the floor. “Starting to feel a little better about this, Mantis?” Liquid said softly, leaning his head against Mantis’ leg and hovering one hand about a centimeter over Mantis’ underwear.

“Your emotions help,” Mantis said.

“Hmm.” If ‘Liquid Snake’ and ‘emotional self-control’ actually belonged in the same sentence, Mantis would have thought that that little rush of affection at those words had been intentional. But it did help.

He let Liquid pull down his underwear (and his pants, too, a bit further), and again he bunched his shirt halfway up his torso with one hand, giving Liquid plenty of skin to work with, as unsettling a thought as that was. Liquid’s breath was- hot, and slightly moist, on Mantis’ cock and it was a _weird_ feeling, then Liquid scooted forward a little, grasping Mantis’ hips and kissing his stomach again, just below his navel.

Alright. Yes, starting several inches above the penis and working his way down probably _was_ the best way to go about this. Gave Mantis plenty of time to adjust.

…it did not give Mantis enough time to adjust.

As soon as he felt that first careful press of lips against the base of his dick, he stiffened. Not because it was unpleasant - the opposite, really. The more Liquid kissed and touched him the more he felt an uncomfortable thrum, a fever-like heat under his skin, that he _knew_ signified arousal and it had spiked suddenly when Liquid showed him exactly how _sensitive_ the genitals were.

At least Liquid wasn’t _completely_ oblivious, sometimes anyway. He noticed Mantis’ sudden tensing and skipped over his crotch, instead tugging his pants down a little further and kissing the insides of Mantis’ thighs, very high up near his groin, true, and in Mantis’ opinion the flesh there was _absurdly, unfairly_ sensitive, but it was the less extreme option. He relaxed again.

 _Good?_ Liquid thought. Mantis felt the slight wetness of tongue.

He ran a hand over Liquid’s hair. “Not awful,” he said.

_May I continue?_

Mantis bit the inside of his cheek behind his mask. _Go ahead_ , he told Liquid.

Liquid returned to his cock, kissing it again - Mantis concentrated on not flinching - then flicking his tongue over it slowly, a gentle lick without the commitment of his whole tongue. The saliva cooling on his skin against the air of the room was an almost sharp sensation, one Mantis couldn’t help but squirm at, his hand tightening in Liquid’s hair.

But he didn’t really want him to stop.

Thank God Liquid could pick up on Mantis’ feelings without him having to speak out loud or even in articulate thought - it saved Mantis the humiliation of telling him to keep going himself. Liquid obliged, getting a little bolder, wrapping his fingers around the base and sucking softly on the side of it, gazing up at Mantis.

Mantis looked away again.

Oh hell.

It was much more devotion in his thoughts than base lust, but nonetheless Mantis couldn’t stand looking at the expression in the eyes right now. It was a little too intimate, a little too raw.

He felt Liquid’s hand move up, stroking him, his warm fingers cutting through the cool saliva and - and his hot lips, god… no matter what Mantis’ mind was doing right now, no matter how tight his throat and chest felt, his dick certainly liked this, and twitched unbidden under Liquid’s efforts.

Mantis had been too focused on quashing down his own nausea to notice that, despite Mantis’ earlier disclaimer, Liquid was starting to feel like he was inadequate somehow, like he was doing a bad job or something, until he sighed in relief at the beginnings of Mantis’ erection. _Finally,_ he was thinking, _a reaction_. Then, _Mantis, do you like this?_

“Ah… I…”

 _Does it feel good?_ he tried instead, pressing his tongue against tip, then dragging it back over the top, a wide swathe of heat and wetness. Mantis twitched.

“…yes.”

Liquid hummed appreciatively, trailing kisses along a vein, and Mantis gave up entirely, shutting his eyes and leaning back, his hips jerking up involuntarily, his half-hard cock glancing off Liquid’s cheek. “There we go,” Liquid cooed, getting a little grabbier, a little sloppier, lapping up pre-seminal fluid like it was some kind of sick drink and getting his hands all sorts of places Mantis would never, ever have allowed if it were anyone else in the world.

“Ah- gh— Eli…”

All but in spite of himself, Mantis’ dick got stiff enough that it was almost starting to ache, more and more with every throb, and he buried his fingers in Liquid’s hair, panting harshly. It was only visceral, he told himself. Only the result of biological imperative, it wasn’t his fault, and Liquid was the one who did this to him anyway - who wanted to do this to him — and _god_ Liquid was so happy right now, so utterly enamored with every gasp and tiny moan Mantis unintentionally made, so what did it matter, anyway? Let him put them back on what he considered even footing. And maybe try not to lose control of himself _completely_ in the meantime…

Liquid ran his tongue up from base to tip, then, taking a deep breath through his nose, opened his mouth wide and took the head of Mantis’ cock in, half-curling his tongue around it, and started to suck gently. A shudder ran through Mantis’ whole body. He thrust partway into Liquid’s mouth, without thinking, and Liquid took it easily, still sucking, swallowing—-

Oh, _oh_ , he was good at this. He was _amazing_ at this. He was-

He certainly knew what he was doing. He was… practiced—

Too practiced.

 _Fuck_.

Mantis pushed him away, suddenly revolted and horrified with himself. Liquid blinked at him in surprise for a few seconds, then sat up, staring at him, wiping his mouth with the back of a hand.

There was a long pause.

It was hard to say if Mantis was accidentally broadcasting his thoughts or if Liquid was just randomly hearing them via their psychic link (both were possible) but certainly Liquid knew just what Mantis was thinking about now.

“This is-“ he started, his voice tight, “it’s- it’s not— this is _different_ , Mantis.”

Mantis shook his head. “I just… Eli, I can’t do this to you.”

“But I-“ Liquid shifted his weight uncomfortably, “I want it this time. I _want_ this. It’s _you_.”

“I am sorry, but I- cannot help but think about it. I don’t want to make you use skills that were beaten into you.”

“Every skill I’ve _got_ was beaten into me,” Liquid said petulantly, but the discussion was effectively over. Liquid’s mood had dropped, and when he glanced at Mantis’ erection again it was with disgust and perhaps a little bit of perturbation, like he was just seeing it for the first time and he had suddenly remembered how he had felt when he’d first been forced eye-to-eye with one of his Iraqi captor’s dicks.

He slouched, holding his head in his hands and growling to himself. His head was pounding and he felt even sicker to his stomach than Mantis did. Mantis reached out to him, but as soon as Liquid noticed he snapped his head up, hissing ferally.

“ _Don’t touch me_.”

Mantis didn’t persist. He withdrew his hand and Liquid glared at him for another moment, and despite his hard expression Mantis was _keenly_ aware of the fact that he was really just hurt and confused — then Liquid turned away pointedly and flopped down on the bed, curling up with his back to Mantis.

Yes. Just letting this whole situation be and turning in for the night probably _was_ the best idea.

Mantis used his psychokinesis to drape a blanket over Liquid, as unobtrusively as possible, then fixed his pants and laid down next to him, putting a good twelve inches and his back between them. His erection would fade on its own within a few minutes.

“Good night, boss,” he said.

“Nn.”

* * *

Despite Liquid’s mood when he laid down to go to sleep, by the time sleep finally came he’d started craving affection and reassurance, and Mantis had shifted on the bed, settling behind him with his chin resting on the top of his head and his arms around his middle, his chest pressed against his back. Liquid summarily drifted off, and Mantis - still feeling rather uncomfortable in his own skin - went to sleep soon after.

Liquid idly wondered why he had woken up.

It definitely wasn’t time to get up yet, half-asleep as he still was he was aware of that much. Usually when he woke up before he was supposed to it was because he had had a nightmare — but typically he remembered it, or at least remembered having it, and besides, when it came to night terrors he would _always_ wake up with his heart hammering in his chest, and that wasn’t the case now.

Must have been something else.

Something like that weird stiffness against his lower back.

Drowsily he rolled over, snuggling up against Mantis again, and only then did he realize very, very belatedly that that rigidity was Mantis’ cock - he must have gotten hard again in his sleep, considering that he was even now softly snoring through his gas mask.

Ah, well, these things tend to happen when you conk out with recently abandoned arousal. Even the great Psycho Mantis wasn’t immune to hormones.

Liquid pulled him closer, nuzzling against his throat, not really any more awake than he’d been half a minute ago. Mantis’ erection brushed up against his stomach, and Mantis shifted in his sleep, his breath going a little uneven for a moment… he woke up.

“Hm…?”

“I love you,” Liquid murmured.

Mantis ran a hand though his hair sleepily, then went completely still as he apparently realized that he’s been halfway to a nocturnal emission when he’d woken up.

“Ah…”

“Shh.” Liquid kissed his throat. “It’s alright.”

“I… did not mean…”

“It’s fine, Mantis.” Another kiss. “It happens. Not your fault.”

Mantis nodded tiredly, hooking his arms around Liquid’s shoulders. Poor guy just wanted this little problem dealt with so he could nod off again, huh…?

 _It’ll go away in a few minutes…_ Mantis thought.

“It’ll just come back if you give yourself blue balls again,” Liquid yawned, then kissed the underside of his jaw, cupping a hand on the back of one of Mantis’ legs, just under his ass. “I’ll take care of it for you, Mantis…”

“Eli…”

He pulled Mantis very close, pressing his groin flush against his stomach, and shifted his weight slowly, rubbing up against it. Mantis’ breath caught, and he made a tiny little noise in his throat that Liquid mostly caught only because of the vibration against his lips.

“Come on, Mantis,” he whispered against his skin, “move with me… it’ll be done with in a few minutes, just let it happen…”

“Ahh—“

Mantis let Liquid coax him into rocking his hips against him, languidly grinding against his abs, his breathing shivery and his arms tight around Liquid. Liquid couldn’t resist rubbing himself against his thigh in turn - but they both moved unhurriedly, with no urgency or desperation — just slow, sleepy friction, nice and gentle and languorous. Dreamy. Indulgent.

God, Mantis was so warm.

“Mantis, I love you.”

“Mmm…”

Liquid rolled over, holding Mantis beneath him, sucking at his throat and still lazily humping his leg. Mantis moved with him, squirming with no real sense of restlessness, letting out murmured little complaints as Liquid ran his hands up under his shirt, brushing his fingers across his individually-outlined ribs.

“You should eat more,” Liquid mumbled against his neck.

“I’m fine, Eli…”

“You’re so thin.”

“Is this really the best time to talk about this?”

Liquid shook his head against Mantis’ collarbone. Right, now wasn’t the time to talk, now was the time to shut up and get some lovin’ on, and then go back to sleep and when they woke up in the morning they would probably both initially assume that this had only been a vivid and very pleasant dream.

It certainly _felt_ like a dream, the languid movements and slow, deep breathing as Liquid undressed Mantis, then himself, warmth radiating off of their bare skins and eyes heavily lidded with arousal and boneless relaxation.

It was good.

But it couldn’t hold Liquid’s attention for long. The persistent throbbing of his dick was really starting to wake him up, and he sat up, pulling Mantis up onto his lap, burying his head in Mantis’ shoulder and rutting between what little he had to offer in the way of asscheeks.

“Mm… Eli, you really don’t have to…”

“I want you,” Liquid said in a low whisper.

“Fine, fine… go ahead.” Liquid heard him yawn behind his mask. “If I happen to go back to sleep, just keep going until we’re both satisfied…”

“Oh god, Mantis, don’t fall asleep while I’m fucking you. I don’t think my pride could take it.”

“Mnn.”

…at least he gave him permission _to_ fuck him.

Liquid looked over Mantis’ naked, bony body and tried to think of how this was supposed to go. He was _pretty_ sure there was a way to do this without hurting Mantis— he suddenly recalled reading about it in a trashy romance novel some years ago. Probably had Mantis to thank for drawing that memory to the fore.

“You’re welcome,” Mantis mumbled drowsily.

Liquid held Mantis close as he reached for the drawer that had a small bottle of lube in it, and nearly toppled both of them off the bed in the process. Fortunately Liquid had an excellent sense of balance, so Mantis, who had closed his eyes, didn’t even notice that part…

Working quickly before Mantis could take his chance to doze off, Liquid fumbled with the lube, generously coating three fingers before losing the bottle somewhere over the edge of the mattress. He’d deal with that in the morning. He groped blindly about Mantis’ ass - Mantis shivered - until he found the hole, then slipped one finger in.

“ _Oh_ —“ Mantis arched his back, his arms tightening around Liquid again, shifting his weight forward on Liquid’s hand. “Ahh, oh Eli…”

“You’re so cute when you’re tired…”

Mantis leaned his head against Liquid’s shoulder, not dignifying that comment with a response. Liquid chuckled, pressing and twisting his finger experimentally, then inserting a second and tonguing Mantis’ earlobe over his whispered almost-protests. It was just sleepy absent-minded accusations about Liquid’s “out of control” libido, with no bite behind them.

As gently as he could, Liquid pushed in the third finger, being fairly certain that once Mantis had adjusted to that then his ass would be stretched and loosened enough that Liquid could fuck him without hurting him. That was how it worked, right? Suppose that novel had been wrong…? Liquid _really_ didn’t want to hurt him, especially not after how much effort Mantis had gone to to disassociate sex from pain and violence in Liquid’s mind.

“I will be fine, Eli,” Mantis said, nuzzling him, still leisurely rocking back and forth on Liquid’s fingers. “There is… no need to worry about me…”

“Then… can I-?”

“Give me a minute.”

Liquid whined against his throat, spreading his fingers and feeling Mantis jerk and twitch around him, his legs pressing against his waist. Eventually, with a startled “Ah!” from Mantis, Liquid found his prostate, but before he could really figure out what to do with it Mantis drew back slightly, placed his hands on Liquid’s chest, and pulled himself off of Liquid’s hand.

“M—… Mantis…”

“Hush. It’s late.”

Mantis laid back on the bed again, stretching out sedately, then drew his knees up, turning his head to the side. After a moment of Liquid staring at him in confusion (did this mean the sex was off?) he raised one hand and lazily curled his fingers, and Liquid felt an invisible hand on his back pushing him forward until he was over Mantis and between his legs.

“Let’s get this over with,” Mantis yawned.

“Don’t let your enthusiasm get the better of you, now,” Liquid snarked, but his dick felt hard as diamonds just at the sight of Mantis splayed and ready beneath him like this. God, he really should have turned on the light before his hands had started trembling with barely controlled arousal. Too late now.

He found Mantis’ asshole much more easily this time, his cock sliding to rest against it with all the lube smeared there. Gripping Mantis around his skinny waist, kissing his jaw and wishing this could have taken place somewhere more isolated than the FOXHOUND headquarters so Mantis could take off his mask and let Liquid taste the inside of his mouth, Liquid slowly pushed forward.

The heat and pulsing pressure and the way Mantis squirmed, wrapping his arms around Liquid’s neck and his legs around Liquid’s waist, was enough to make him moan loudly against Mantis’ skin. He’d imagined this, sure, in passing mostly, but he’d never thought it would feel as good as _this_. Mantis was incomparably tight and hot and Liquid bit his lip hard, reminding himself that he was supposed to give Mantis a moment to adjust before really fucking him proper.

“No, go on, you disgusting creature,” Mantis said with a kind of half-asleep, inattentive affection.

“You- you’re sure?”

“Yes, yes…”

Liquid didn’t need telling again. He started moving his hips, as slowly as he could stand, one hand tight against Mantis’ lower back, holding him close to meet his thrusts, the other one tangled into the sheets.

“Oh god… Mantis, you f-feel good…”

Mantis just twisted underneath him, breath rasping hard through his gas mask, eyes closed, moaning low in his throat. Liquid kissed him over and over, anywhere his mouth could reach his flesh, leaving a few conspicuous hickeys - god, Mantis was going to kill him in the morning, wasn’t he? He’d _never_ let Liquid do this while fully awake.

 _Oh, hush_ , Mantis thought, gently tugging on Liquid’s hair.

And really, it wasn’t until now that Liquid realized that even with as many years had passed, even now that Mantis was all bald and foul-tempered and taller than Liquid, he was still _adorable_. That had never changed.

Liquid loved him so, so much.

“Ghh… Eli, that feels nice…”

It was the ambiguous early hours of the morning, when time passed without really passing at all, like a slow, still river, and it was hard to say exactly how long it took of tender fucking- no, lovemaking- before Mantis’ back arched and he cried out as his orgasm coursed through him. Liquid gasped at the hot, sticky semen between their stomachs.

“O-Oh— Mantis—“

“Eli…” Mantis nuzzled him groggily, then settled back on the bed, his legs still hooked around Liquid’s hips, a silent signal for him to just keep going until he was done, too.

“I l-love you,” Liquid panted, his grip on his body tightening — at this rate he was going to bruise Mantis on accident.

“I love you too, Eli…”

Liquid went completely still.

Mantis had _never_ said that out loud before.

“W-What?” he said around a lump in his throat.

“I love you… you are... my whole world…” Mantis murmured, and a second later he was asleep, limp and snoring softly again.

Oh, _god_.

Everything that had ever happened in Liquid’s miserable, misbegotten life seemed, just for a moment, to be _completely worth it_ if it had lead him exactly here, tonight, with Mantis in his bed and his cock in Mantis, and Mantis - aloof, reticent, timorous Mantis - saying that _he loved him_.

Liquid could have cried.

* * *

_Get up, Liquid, I’m sticky all over and it is_ your _fault._

“Is that supposed to be a wake-up call?” Liquid yawned, rolling over pointedly.

“Up. It is morning.”

“Five more minutes…”

Suddenly it felt like the sheets had been turned to thumbtacks, and Liquid threw back the covers and jumped up quickly. Mantis, the insufferable little shit, was still lounging on the bed, head settled in his arms, watching Liquid with disinterest.

“Get dressed. You should shower, too.”

“I think you need it more,” Liquid said, glancing down Mantis’ body and flushing slightly — he was still naked, with hickies on his neck and shoulders, bruises on his hips, a bit of dried semen on his stomach, and looking closely Liquid could see the shiny, filmy residue of semen mixed with lube where it had trickled down his thighs.

So it _had_ actually happened.

And _bloody hell_ was Mantis attractive like this. What Liquid wouldn’t give to see him in this exactly this state every morning, forever…

Mantis glanced down. “No morning quickies, Liquid,” he said with disdain. “And keep your stupid fantasies to yourself.”

“Aha, sorry.” He retrieved his clothes off the floor, quickly dressing and putting his very-interested-in-the-proceedings cock back where it belonged, out of sight. “You’d do well with a shower yourself, Mantis.”

“I am not denying that, but _I_ can go back to sleep for another twenty minutes, _boss_.”

“Mmph. …are you planning to cover those hickies up?”

“Do you want me to?” He stretched out, casually, but enticingly enough that Liquid suspected he was teasing him. “Or would you rather show me off — the boss’ conquest?”

“Up to you. I’ll be distracted all day either way, I’m sure.”

“Mmm, you will.” He rolled onto his side, drawing the blankets back over himself. _I’ll decide later…_

“I’m not going to let you sleep in all day, you know,” Liquid said, leaning over with one knee on the mattress, then kissed Mantis’ temple. “But… perhaps a little bit longer than is really _fair_ , per se.”

“How sweet of you…”

“I love you, Mantis.”

Mantis chuckled dryly, resettling against the bed. “I am not going to say the silly thing back again, boss.”

“It was worth a shot,” Liquid said, standing up. “Well, even if you refuse to say it again, you _did_ say it once- twice, actually — so…”

“I ought to erase your memory of it.”

“You wouldn’t dare.” He paused. “Even if that were something you could do in the first place. ...is it…?”

“No… at least, I have never done it before. I suppose I’ll just bear the embarrassment with more dignity than you displayed last night…”

“Undignified or not, you still went with it. Eventually.”

“Go shower, boss.”

Liquid rolled his eyes and walked off - hesitating in the doorway, just about to step out into the hallway.

“Mantis?” he said, glancing over his shoulder at him.

“Hm?”

“Thank you.”

“…mm. For you, anything, boss.”

**Author's Note:**

> (any and all comments will be forewarded to aireyv! i will either copy/paste their reply to me or they will reply on their own account! have a nice day!!! if you have any questions, just ask!!!!)


End file.
